Sonic scrubbing device



Nov. 12, 1968 Filed June 6, 1966 A. s. BODINE, JR 3,409,925

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United States Patent 6 3,409,925 SONIC SCRUBBING DEVICE Albert G. Bodine, Jr., 7877 Woodley Ave., Van Nuys, Calif. 91406 Filed June 6, 1966, Ser. No. 555,422 8 Claims. (Cl. -97) ABSTRACTOF THE DISCLOSURE A highly compliant applicator member which closely conforms to surfaces to be cleaned is formed by a fiexible container member which has a fluid medium therein. This applicator member is applied against the surfaces to be cleaned and follows the irregularities of such surfaces. Sonic elastic vibrational energy generated by means of a mechanical oscillator member is coupled to a reasonant bar member which is elastically vibrated at a resonant sonic frequency. Sonic energy developed in the resonant bar member is coupled to the applicator member for utilization in affecting the cleaning action at the interface between the applicator member and the surfaces to be cleaned.

This invention rel-ates to a sonic scrubbing device and more particularly to such a device especially suitable for cleaning members having highly irregular or convoluted surfaces.

In my Patent No. 3,166,772, a device utilizing sonic energy for surface cleaning is described. In the various embodiments described in this patent, an elastic resonator member is resonantly vibrated by means of a sonic oscillator, and the energy so generated is coupled to a scrubbing member which is applied to the surfaces to be cleaned, a cleansing liquid being utilized to implement the cleaning action. It has been found that the utilization of sonic energy in this fashion greatly facilitates and enhances the cleaning action.

While the techniques described in the aforementioned Patent No. 3,166,772 are highly effective in cleaning relatively regular surfaces, they are not as effective as would be desired where highly irregular or convoluted surfaces are involved, such as in the cleaning of elecrtical power pole insulators. The application of a liquid to the surfaces to be cleaned where cleaning such parts in their installed locations is also undesirable both from the point of view of the untidy spattering of surrounding objects that it produces as well as the electrical hazard incidental to the wetting of high tension power apparatus.

The devices of this invention overcome the aforementioned difficulties in providing sonic scrubber devices capable of cleaning irregular and convoluted surfaces with a high degree of efficiency. Such cleaning action is achieved without the application of liquid to the surfaces to be cleaned, thereby avoiding the aforementioned problems of prior art devices. Further, the cleaning action causes little or no abrasion to the surfaces to be cleaned, thereby avoiding the possibility of any damage to fragile surfaces as are involved with such objects as porcelain and glass electrical insulators.

The desired end results are achieved in this invention by utilizing a highly compliant applicator member which closely conforms to the surfaces to be cleaned. This applicator member in some embodiments comprises a liquid filled flexible bag and in other embodiments comprises a brush member having long relatively soft bristles. Sonic elastic vibrational energy generated by means of a mechanical oscillator member is coupled to a resonant bar member which is elastically vibrated at a resonant sonic frequency, with the sonic energy being efiiciently coupled to the applicator member for utilization at the interface between the applicator member and the surfaces to be cleaned.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved sonic scrubbing device particularly suitable for cleaning irregular and convoluted surfaces.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a sonic scrubbing [device capable of achieving highly efficient scrubbing action without the need for applying a liquid to the surfaces to be cleaned.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a sonic scrubbing device which while providing highly effective cleaning action will not mar the surfaces of the object being cleaned.

It is still another object of this invention to provide improved means for cleaning the convoluted surfaces of electrical insulators.

Other objects of this invention .will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, of which FIG. 1 is a plan view of a first embodiment of the device of the invention,

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 1 taken along the plane indicated by 22 in FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view partially in cross section of the embodiment of FIG. 1,

FIG. 4 is a plan view partially in cross section of a second embodiment of the device of the invention,

FIG. 5 is a view of the second embodiment taken along the plane indicated by 5-5 in FIG. 4,

FIG. 6 is a plan view partly in cross section of a third embodiment of the device of the invention,

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of the third embodiment taken along the plane indicated by 77 in FIG. 6,

FIG. 8 is a cross sectional plan view of a fourth embodiment of the device of the invention, and

FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view taken along the plane indicated by 99 in FIG. 8.

It is helpful to the comprehension of this invention to make an analogy between an electrical resonant circuit and a mechanical resonant circuit. This type of analogy is well known to those skilled in the art and is described, for example, in Chapter 2 of Sonics by Hueter and Bolt, published in 1955 by John Wiley and Sons. In making such an analogy, force, F, is equated with electrical voltage, E; velocity of vibration, u, is equated with electrical current, i; mechanical compliance, C is equated with electrical capacitance, C mass, M, is equated with electrical inductance, L; mechanical resistance (friction), R is equated with electrical resistance, R; and mechanical impedance, Z- is equated with electrical impedance, Z Thus, it can be shown that if a member is elastically vibrated by a sinusoidal force, F sin wt, to being equal to 21r times the frequency of vibration, that Where wM is equal to 1/ wC' a resonant condition exists, and the effective mechanical impedance, Z is equal to the mechanical resistance, R, the reactive impedance components, wM and I/wC cancelling each other out. Under such a resonant condition, velocity of vibration, u, is at a maximum, efl'ective power factor is unity, and energy is most efliciently delivered to the object being vibrated. It is such a high efiiciency resonant condition in the elastic system being driven that is preferably utilized in this invention to achieve the desired end results.

It is to be noted by reference to Equation 1 that velocity of vibration, u, is highest where impedance, Z is lowest, and vice versa. Therefore, a high impedance load will tend to vibrate at relatively low velocity, and vice versa. Thus, at an interface between high and low impedance elements,

a high relative movement results by virtue of such impedance mismatch which, as in the equivalent electricalcircuit, results in a high reflected wave. Such an impedance mismatch at the interface between the applicator member and the surfaces to be cleaned results in high sonic action at such interface to provide highly eflective cleaning effects.

Just as the sharpness of resonance of an electrical circuit is defined as the Q thereof and is indicative of the ratio of energy stored to the energy used in each cycle, so also the Q of the mechanical resonant circuit has the same significance and is equal to the ratio between wM and R Thus, high efliciency and considerable cyclic motion can be achieved by designing the mechanical resonant circuit for high Q.

In considering the significance of the parameters described in connection with Equation 1, it should be kept in mind that the total effective resistance, mass, and compliance in the acoustically vibrating circuit are represented in the equation and that these parameters may be distributed throughout the system rather than being lumped in any one component or portion thereof.

It is also to be noted that an orbiting mass oscillator is utilized in the preferred embodiments of the invention that automatically adjusts its output frequency to maintain resonance with changes in the characteristics of the circuit. Thus, in the face of changes in the effective mass and compliance presented, the system automatically is maintained in optimum resonant operation by virtue of the lock in characteristics of applicants unique orbiting mass oscillator. The vibrational output from such an orbiting mass oscillator is generated in a resonant member along a controlled predetermined coherent path to provide maximum output along a desired axis or axes. The orbiting mass oscillator automatically changes not only its frequency but its phase angle and therefore its power factor with changes in the resistive impedance load to assure optimum eificiency of operation at all times.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-3, a first embodiment of the device of the invention is illustrated. Bar member 11 has a head portion 14 and a handle portion 15 integrally formed therewith. Attached to head portion 14 in water tight relationship by means of rivets 17 or any other suitable means is bag applicator member 19 which is filled with a liquid 20, which may be water. Bag member 19 is fabricated of a sheet of soft compliant material, such as soft rubber. For certain applications the cleaning surface of the bag may have an abrasive texture. Bag 19 may be if so desired filled with a fluid other than a liquid, such as for example a high viscosity semicured rubber.

Mounted on and tightly coupled to bar 11 is oscillator unit which comprises a roller 26 mounted for rotation in housing 27 about shaft 30. Roller 26 is rotationally driven by means of motor 33, the output shaft 30 of which has a paddle 30a attached thereto which engages the roller. Motor 33 is supported on handle member 15 and receives its electrical drive power through cable 35.

Roller 26 is rotated at a frequency such as to cause resonant vibration of bar member 11, setting up standing waves therealong and in head member 14 as indicated by graph lines 37. In addition to the longitudinal vibration indicated by the graph lines, transverse vibrations are also set up in bar member 11 by virtue of the rotation of roller 26. A velocity antinode of the longitudinal standing wave should, as indicated by graph lines 37, occur in the vicinity of the applicator head to produce high motion at such head for optimum cleaning effect.

It is to be noted that a cavitation effect generally occurs in liquid 20 in response to the high level of sonic energy imparted to the liquid. Shock waves generated by such cavitation are delivered to the surfaces to be cleaned to greatly aid in the loosening and spalling off of dirt from such surfaces.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, a second embodiment of the device of the invention is illustrated. This second 4 s r a embodiment utilizes an oscillator member (not shown) and abar member 11 which is resonantly excitedthereby closely similar to that described in connection with FIGS. 1-3. This second embodiment, however, utilizes an applicator head in the shape of an annulus and is particularly suitable for cleaning the surfaces of highly convoluted members such as, for example, those of an electrical power line insulator 42.

Applicator head 40 comprises an annular frame portion which is integrally formed with bar member 11 and an annular bag member 46 fabricated of a flexible material such as neoprene. The outer edges of bag member 46 are attached to the edges of the inner wall of frame member 45 in fluid-tight relationship therewith by means of bolts 48 and clamping rings 51. Bag 46 is filled with a suitable liquid 50 through aperture 52 which is appropriately sealed with a plug 53. As for the embodiment described in connection with FIGS. 1-3, the resonant sonic energy is transferred from resonant bar member 11 to the liquid medium 50 in the bag to the surfaces of insulator 42, with a high relative motion occurring at the interface between the bag and the insulator. Both lateral and longitudinal vibrational waves occur at such interface regions with a resultant sliding and scrubbing effect resulting from the transverse waves, while the longitudinal waves produce the cavitation shock wave effect mentioned in connection with the first embodiment. This results in highly effective cleaning action which loosens and spalls olf dirt particles with comparative ease.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, a third embodiment of the device of the invention is illustrated. This embodiment has an applicator head in the form of an annulus as for the embodiment of FIGS. 4 and 5, but rather than utilizing a bag member filled with liquid, a brush member is utilized having a plurality of soft long bristles which provide the compliant cleaning medium. Applicator head 40 comprises an annular frame 45 having a plurality of long soft bristle members 57 protruding inwardly from the inner surfaces thereof. Bristle members 57 have relatively long bristles fabricated of a compliant material such as nylon. The convoluted member 42 to be cleaned is held between the bristles and with the application of sonic energy from the oscillator (not shown) to bar member 11, such energy is transmitted through the bristles to the interface formed between the bristles and the member 42 to be cleaned. The bristles are relatively confined and transmit not only lateral vibrations to the interface but also transmit compressional waves running along the 1ongitudinal axes thereof to provide a series of impact actions against the surface to be cleaned. The bristle members are closely adjacent to each other and thus dampen out lateral vibrations resulting in good transmission of the lingitudinal waves. This is so even though each bristle by itself is slender and unstable.

Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, a fourth embodiment of the device of the invention is illustrated. In this embodiment, the applicator head 40 forms a cylindrical compartment in which the article 42 to be cleaned is inserted and held centrally by means of rod 60. Rod 60 is retained in housing 59 by means of nuts 62. Applicator head 40 is connected to bar member 11 by means of yoke 65. Yoke is removably attached to housing 59 by means of a pair of clamps (not shown) which are removably bolted to the yoke and surround the ends of the housing. Article 42 can thus be inserted in the housing by removing the yoke, whereupon the ends of the housing which are separable therefrom can be removed. Bar member 11 is vibrationally excited by means of the sonic oscillator (not shown) in the same fashion as for the other embodiments with the sonic energy being transferred from bar member 11 through yoke 65 to the applicator. The sonic energy is coupled to the surfaces to be cleaned through bristles 57 which aresimilar to those described in connection with the embodiment of FIG. 6, with the sonic cleaning action being accomplished as described in connection with the previous embodiment.

It is to be noted that the embodiments of FIGS. 4-9 utilize handle members, oscillator members and oscillator drives similar in configuration to those shown and described in connection with the embodiment of FIGS. 1-3.

The devices ofthis invention thus provide highly eflicient means for cleaning irregular surfaces, such as the convoluted surface areas of members such as electrical insulators. This end result is achieved by exciting a resonant member by means of a mechanical oscillator and coupling the vibrational energy from the resonant member to an applicator having a highly compliant fluid type structure capable of transmitting both longitudinal and lateral vibrational energy to the surfaces to be cleaned.

While the invention has been described and illustrated in detail it is to be clearly understood that this is intended by Way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation, the spirit and scope of the invention being limited only by the terms of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A sonic cleaning device for cleaning objects having irregular surfaces comprising a bar member,

an applicator member attached to said bar member,

and mechanical oscillator means connected to said bar member for sonically resonantly vibrating said bar member and said applicator member,

the output of said mechanical oscillator means being coupled to said bar member to set up (standing waves) resonant elastic vibration having relatively high velocity in the vicinity of said applicator member,

said applicator member including a head portion attached to said bar member and a fluid portion comprising a compliant container mounted on said head portion and a fluid contained within and enveloped by said container for providing a compliant surface which follows the irregularities of the surface to be cleaned,

whereby said resonant vibration is efiiciently transmitted from said bar member and head portion to said surfaces.

2. The device as recited in claim 1 and further including handle means attached to said bar member for providing a holder for the operator of the device.

3. The device as recited in claim 1 wherein said mechanical oscillator means comprises an orbiting mass oscillator for generating sonic vibrations along both the longitudinal and transverse axes of said bar member.

4. The device as recited in claim 1 wherein the fluid portion of said applicator member comprises a bag member fabricated of a compliant material and a fluid contained in said bag member.

5. The device as recited in claim 4 wherein said bag member comprises a sheet of compliant material attached to the end of said head portion in liquid tight relationship thereto.

6. A sonic cleaning device for cleaning objects having irregular surfaces comprising:

a bar member,

an applicator member attached to said bar member,

and mechanical oscillator means connected to said bar member for sonically resonantly vibrating said bar member and said applicator member,

the output of said mechanical oscillator means being coupled to said bar member to set up resonant elastic vibration having relatively high velocity in the vicinity of said applicator member,

said applicator member including a head portion attached to said bar member and a fluid portion mounted on said head portion for providing a compliant surface which follows the irregularities of the surfaces to be cleaned, said fluid portion comprising a bag member fabricated of a compliant material, and a fluid contained in said bag member,

said head portion comprising an annular frame, said bag member being annularly shaped and having its edge portions attached to the edges of said frame in internal concentric relationship therewith.

7. The device as recited in claim 6, including clamping ring means for attaching the edge portions of said bag member to said frame in fluid tight relationship therewith.

8. The device as recited in claim 6 wherein said fluid comprises a liquid.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 296,370 4/1884 Walker 51373 1,493,779 5/ 1924 Humphreys 51-373 2,475,972 7/ 1949 Longley 51--373 3,166,772 1/1965 Bodine 15-22 3,166,773 1/ 1965 Wyczalek 1597 EDWARD L. ROBERTS, Primary Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,409,925 November 12, 1968 Albert G. Bodine, Jr.

It is certified that error appears in the above identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 5, lines 31 and 32, cancel "(standing wave)".

Signed and sealed this 10th day of March 1970.

(SEAL) Attest:

Edward M. Fletcher, Jr.

Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents WILLIAM E. SCHUYLER, JR. 

